Don't crucify Georges Laraque

The Habs tough guy is under fire from women’s groups for participating in an ad for Octane 7.0, an energy drink containing alcohol. The ad features Laraque playing street hockey with a group of barely dressed women and includes numerous close-ups of the womens’ bodies.

Is the ad sexist? Yes, without a doubt. It clearly fosters stereotypes of women based on sex. In this case, the women don’t even speak; their only raison d’etre is their bodies. While Laraque doesn’t speak either, he is appearing in the ad because of his skill and notoriety as a professional hockey player, not because of his body. Not to mention the fact that he is the only one fully clothed.

Having said that, let’s not crucify the guy. While the ad is sexist, so is nearly every beer commercial out there. The vast majority of Superbowl commercials, the most watched of the year, feature women as sex objects because it’s a sales technique that works with the male demographic. And maybe with the female demographic, if the Victoria Secret fashion show and billboard ads are any indication. Not that prevalence makes sexism acceptable, it just means that one ad amongst many shouldn't be singled out as the culprit.

Yes, it’s concerning that little girls are bombarded with images of women that promote a completely narrow definition of beauty based solely on their bodies, but don’t tar-and-feather Laraque. He doesn’t deserve to become the poster boy for sexism. There are people higher up the food chain far more deserving of that title.